Components

Point of interest: 足(あし)

POI
足(あし)  foot or leg?
171 words
あし
is used to refer to both 'foot' and 'leg', so without context, it can sometimes be unclear which is being referred to, or how to specify which you mean!
In some cases, the context makes the choice more straightforward:
いもうと
あし
なが

My sister has long legs.
It is certainly possible the sister has 'long feet', but rather unlikely.
かれ
あし
みず
れてみた

He touched the water with his foot.
It would be hard to touch the water with your leg first.
かのじょ
彼女
こっせつ
骨折
した
あし
まだ
なお
っていない

Her broken leg has not healed yet.
In this case, however, without further context, we cannot be sure whether it was a broken foot or a broken leg.
For this reason, it is often necessary to use a more specific body part to pin things down - so it's helpful to know the words for ankle (
あしくび
足首
(literally, 'neck of the leg'), calf (ふくらはぎ), knee (ひざ) and thigh (もも) for example.
One delightful 足-based phrase is the word for 'toes' -
あし
ゆび
(literally, 'the fingers of your foot'). When we refer to the fingers of the hand, it is not uncommon to hear
ゆび
, but it is not at all necessary.

Kanji used in this point of interest

ソク   あし foot; leg   た to add   た    たりる to be sufficient   
シュ   くび neck; head   
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シ   ゆび finger   さ to point   
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シュ   hand   て    た-    
マイ   いもうと younger sister   
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チョウ   なが long   
ヒ   かれ he   
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スイ   みず water   
ショク   ふれる    さわ to touch   
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ジョ   ニョ   ニョウ   woman; female   おんな woman   め woman   
コツ   ほね bone   
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セツ   お to break, fold   おり opportunity; fold   おれる to break (intr), be folded, yield   
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ジ   チ   おさめる to govern   おさまる to be at peace   なお to get better   なお to cure   
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